The legendary American jazz vocalist was born on April 7, 1915, in Philadelphia and died in 1959 in New York City at age 44.

Holiday performed at least two dozen times at the Apollo. She will be inducted into its Walk of Fame on April 6.

The theatre also is collaborating with Absolutely Live Entertainment and Sony’s Legacy Recordings on other events.

Two-time Grammy winner Cassandra Wilson will give a special Apollo concert in honour of Holiday on April 10.

She’s also releasing an album called “Coming Forth by Day.” It includes original interpretations of 11 recorded Holiday songs.

Holiday’s autobiography was made into the 1972 film “Lady Sings the Blues.”

___

Online: https://www.apollotheatre.org/

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/apollo-theater-to-honour-blues-singer-billie-holidays-100th-birthday-with-induction-concert-2/feed/0New Mexico couple gets engaged, then gets stranded on mountaintop because of high windshttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/new-mexico-couple-gets-engaged-then-gets-stranded-on-mountaintop-because-of-high-winds/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/new-mexico-couple-gets-engaged-then-gets-stranded-on-mountaintop-because-of-high-winds/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 14:00:27 -0800The Associated Press1541319Read the Rest of the Entry]]>ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – An ecstatic New Mexico couple who got engaged on top of Sandia Peak had to curtail their celebrations after getting stuck for hours because of high winds.

KOB-TV in Albuquerque reports (http://goo.gl/mVqiPA ) that Arthur Edelhoff and Lindsay Duncan of Corrales took the tram up the mountaintop early Sunday evening.

After taking happy engagement photos, the couple were told that they had to wait for the 40-mph wind to die down before they could return.

Jay Blackwood, the assistant manager of the Sandia Peak Tram, says around 140 people were stranded for about four hours.

Edelhoff says they didn’t get off the mountain until 10:30 p.m.

___

Information from: KOB-TV, http://www.kob.com

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/new-mexico-couple-gets-engaged-then-gets-stranded-on-mountaintop-because-of-high-winds/feed/0Official: Justice Dept. finds patterns of racial bias in Ferguson police, court and jailhttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/official-justice-dept-finds-patterns-of-racial-bias-in-ferguson-police-court-and-jail/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/official-justice-dept-finds-patterns-of-racial-bias-in-ferguson-police-court-and-jail/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 11:43:37 -0800Eric Tucker, The Associated Press1541133Read the Rest of the Entry]]>WASHINGTON – A U.S. Justice Department investigation will allege sweeping patterns of discrimination within the Ferguson, Missouri, police department and at the municipal jail and court, a law enforcement official familiar with the report said Tuesday.

The report, which could be released as soon as Wednesday, will charge that police disproportionately use excessive force against blacks and that black drivers are stopped and searched far more often than white motorists, even though they’re less likely to be carrying contraband.

The Justice Department also found that blacks were 68 per cent less likely than others to have their cases dismissed by a municipal court judge, and that from April to September of last year, 95 per cent of people kept at the city jail for more than two days were black, according to the official. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak on the record before the report is made public.

The Justice Department began the civil rights investigation following the August shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, by a white police officer. That killing set off weeks of protests.

The official says the report will allege direct evidence of racial bias among police officers and court workers and detail a criminal justice system that prioritizes generating revenue over public safety.

Among the findings of the report was a racially tinged 2008 message in a municipal email account stating that President Barack Obama would not be president for very long because “what black man holds a steady job for four years.”

The department has conducted roughly 20 broad civil rights investigations of police departments during the tenure of Attorney General Eric Holder, including Cleveland, Newark, New Jersey and Albuquerque. Most of those investigations end with the police department agreeing to changes its practices.

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/official-justice-dept-finds-patterns-of-racial-bias-in-ferguson-police-court-and-jail/feed/0Engineer dies from injuries suffered in California commuter train crashhttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/engineer-dies-from-injuries-suffered-in-california-commuter-train-crash/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/engineer-dies-from-injuries-suffered-in-california-commuter-train-crash/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 11:07:42 -0800The Associated Press1541071Read the Rest of the Entry]]>LOS ANGELES, Calif. – An engineer died Tuesday after being injured last week when a California commuter train smashed into a truck on the tracks and derailed, officials said.

Glenn Steele, 62, died at a hospital in Los Angeles, where he was transported after the crash, according to Ed Winter, assistant chief of the coroner’s office.

The train derailed on Feb. 24 when it struck a heavy pickup truck and trailer that had been abandoned on the tracks in Oxnard, about 65 miles (104 kilometres) northwest of Los Angeles. Steele had been among some 30 people injured.

Steele was the senior engineer on the Metrolink train and the longest-serving engineer at the Southern California commuter train network, Metrolink spokesman Scott Johnson said.

The cause of the accident remains under investigation by numerous agencies.

The pickup driver, Jose Alejandro Sanchez-Ramirez, was initially arrested but was subsequently released without charges being immediately filed.

Oxnard police Assistant Chief Jason Benites said Steele’s death changes the nature of the investigation and opens up the potential for a vehicular manslaughter charge.

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/obama-says-netanyahu-speech-had-nothing-new-offered-no-alternative-to-iran-nuclear-talks/feed/2UK proposals to make officials accountable for failing to protect children from sex abusehttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/uk-proposals-to-make-officials-accountable-for-failing-to-protect-children-from-sex-abuse/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/uk-proposals-to-make-officials-accountable-for-failing-to-protect-children-from-sex-abuse/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 10:02:30 -0800Danica Kirka, The Associated Press1540987Read the Rest of the Entry]]>LONDON – Some 370 girls may have suffered sexual exploitation in Oxfordshire in the last 16 years, according to a damning indictment of failings by police and social workers published Tuesday.

The serious case review was a haunting echo to an investigation last year in Rotherham in northwest England, which produced a larger catalogue of abuse and failures by authorities to act on information that might have prevented further abuse. Though the serious case review found no wilful professional misconduct by organizations, it cited a “worrying lack of curiosity and follow through.”

The release of the report came as Prime Minister David Cameron warned of sexual abuse on an “industrial scale” in Britain and accused people and organizations of “walking on by” when faced with abuse.

Cameron deemed sexual exploitation a “national threat,” on par with organized crime, and said he was considering measures to make public officials accountable if they fail protect children from sexual exploitation. The proposed measures were outlined at a meeting called by Cameron that brought police, healthcare experts and ministers together with victims.

An estimated 1,400 children were sexually exploited in Rotherham, a northern England town. A report last year that cited “collective failures” by authorities between 1997 and 2013 shocked the country and led to calls for action.

Alan Bedford, author of the Oxfordshire report, said the review panel was “conscious that these numbers may seem low given the higher figures in Rotherham, but the work was carefully done and was debated and agreed by panel members.”

Nine men were charged in Oxfordshire and seven were convicted, with five drawing life sentences. Further investigations and trials continue.

“What happened to the child victims of the sexual exploitation in Oxfordshire was indescribably awful,” the review said. “The child victims and their families feel very let down. Their accounts of how they perceived professional work are disturbing and chastening.”

Though the defendants were predominantly of Pakistani origin and the victims were white, the report said no evidence was seen of “any agency not acting when they should have done because of racial sensitivities.”

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/uk-proposals-to-make-officials-accountable-for-failing-to-protect-children-from-sex-abuse/feed/0Jury seated in US death penalty trial of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaevhttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/jury-seated-in-us-death-penalty-trial-of-boston-marathon-bombing-suspect-dzhokhar-tsarnaev/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/jury-seated-in-us-death-penalty-trial-of-boston-marathon-bombing-suspect-dzhokhar-tsarnaev/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 09:49:55 -0800Denise Lavoie, The Associated Press1540975Read the Rest of the Entry]]>BOSTON – After two months of jury selection, a panel of 12 jurors and six alternates was seated Tuesday for the federal death penalty trial of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

The panel consists of eight men and 10 women. Opening statements in the case are scheduled for Wednesday.

Tsarnaev, 21, faces 30 charges in connection with twin bombings at the finish line of the marathon April 15, 2013. Three people were killed and more than 260 were injured. He is also charged in the killing of a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer days after the bombings.

If the jury convicts Tsarnaev, the trial will move on to a second phase to determine his punishment. The only two options available for the jury are life in prison or the death penalty.

Many potential jurors were excused when they said they had already formed an opinion on Tsarnaev’s guilt or were morally opposed to the death penalty. Many others were dismissed because of personal connections to the bombings, including people who have friends or family who were near the finish line when the bombs went off or who knew first responders who treated victims.

During the jury selection process, Tsarnaev’s lawyers tried repeatedly to get the trial moved out of Massachusetts, saying he could not find a fair and impartial jury because of the emotional impact the bombings had in the state.

O’Toole rejected three change-of-venue motions, saying the process of carefully questioning jurors to detect bias was successful in finding impartial jurors. The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals twice refused to order the trial moved.

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/jury-seated-in-us-death-penalty-trial-of-boston-marathon-bombing-suspect-dzhokhar-tsarnaev/feed/0Federal agents target industry that helps Chinese women have American-born babieshttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/federal-agents-target-industry-that-helps-chinese-women-have-american-born-babies/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/federal-agents-target-industry-that-helps-chinese-women-have-american-born-babies/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 09:21:42 -0800Amy Taxin, The Associated Press1540951Read the Rest of the Entry]]>IRVINE, Calif. – Federal agents raided more than a dozen homes Tuesday in a crackdown on an industry that helps wealthy, pregnant Chinese women travel to the U.S. to give birth to American babies.

The crackdown on three alleged maternity tourism rings may be the biggest yet by federal homeland security agents who say that, while women may travel to the United States while pregnant, they cannot lie about the purpose of their trip when applying for a visa.

Birth tourism has been reported from a range of countries, but authorities say the most recent cases in California have catered to wealthy Chinese amid a boom in tourism from mainland China. It is unclear how many women travel to the United States for maternity tourism.

Shortly after sunrise Tuesday, federal agents swarmed an upscale apartment complex in the Orange County city of Irvine where authorities say a birth tourism business charged pregnant women $50,000 for lodging, food and transportation.

Investigators said women were coached to lie about their travel plans when applying for tourist visas and were promised they would receive Social Security numbers and U.S. passports for their babies before returning to China.

In one instance, a trainer in China helped fabricate employment and income information for an undercover federal agent posing as a pregnant client to secure a tourist visa and encouraged her to fly through Hawaii, where customs officers were believed to be more lenient than in Los Angeles, according to a copy of an affidavit in support of a search warrant.

The business netted its owners hundreds of thousands of dollars in the past two years and helped Chinese tourists deliver more than 400 American babies at Orange County hospitals, the court papers said.

No arrests were made or charges filed. Investigators conducted the searches in Orange, Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties, hoping to collect evidence of crimes tied to three separate maternity tourism operations, including visa and tax fraud, ICE said.

The key draw for travellers is that the United States offers birthright citizenship. Maternity tourists believe citizenship will help their children secure a top-notch U.S. college education and provide a sort of insurance policy should economic conditions crumble in their home country — especially since the tourists themselves can apply for a green card once their American child turns 21.

Bill Ong Hing, professor of the University of San Francisco School of Law, said wealthy foreigners from across the world often travel to the United States for medical care and are allowed to do so on visitor visas, provided they don’t overstay.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection warns on its website that officers at airports and on the border will consider a pregnant woman’s due date, travel plans and medical insurance to determine whether she can enter the country.

In the Irvine case, investigators said another undercover officer posing as a pregnant traveller was told not to apply for her visa too late as she would be denied if she were noticeably pregnant. A pregnant woman who was questioned at the airport said she was told to say she was simply a tourist, court papers said.

Investigators also tracked the movements of a couple who arrived in February 2014, had their baby in April, and returned in May. While the couple’s bank account recorded charges at luxury stores including Louis Vuitton and Rolex, they paid $4,080 — less than 15 per cent of the billed amount — to the hospital for medical services after stating the mother was not employed, the affidavit said.

Federal agents started investigating the business after an anonymous tip last year.

In 2013, Los Angeles County cited more than a dozen maternity hotels for code violations after an uproar in a nearby suburban community about a hotel operating in a residential neighbourhood.

Jon Feere, legal policy analyst for the Center for Immigration Studies, said he believes birth tourism will grow along with international travel.

“There is a sense the foreigner has control over our immigration policy rather than the American people,” said Feere, who wants stricter limits on immigration.

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/federal-agents-target-industry-that-helps-chinese-women-have-american-born-babies/feed/0Victim’s sister due back on stand in murder trial of ex-New England Patriot Aaron Hernandezhttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/victims-sister-due-back-on-stand-in-murder-trial-of-ex-new-england-patriot-aaron-hernandez/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/victims-sister-due-back-on-stand-in-murder-trial-of-ex-new-england-patriot-aaron-hernandez/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 08:50:29 -0800The Associated Press1540925Read the Rest of the Entry]]>FALL RIVER, Mass. – The sister of the man former New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez is accused of killing is due back on the stand in his murder trial.

Shaquilla Thibou (sha-KEE’-lah TEE’-boo) is the younger sister of Odin Lloyd, who was shot to death in an industrial park near Hernandez’s home on June 17, 2013.

She testified on Monday that she saw him get into a silver Nissan outside their home in Boston around 2:30 a.m., shortly before he died. She said she could not see the driver.

Thibou also testified about four text messages she exchanged with her brother soon after. The last one came at 3:23 a.m. Prosecutors have said he was dead within minutes.

]]>http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/victims-sister-due-back-on-stand-in-murder-trial-of-ex-new-england-patriot-aaron-hernandez/feed/0WA State upping the gas tax to pay for transportation improvementshttp://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/wa-state-upping-gas-tax-for-transportation-improvements/
http://www.news1130.com/2015/03/03/wa-state-upping-gas-tax-for-transportation-improvements/#commentsTue, 03 Mar 2015 08:45:55 -0800Simon Druker1540793SEATTLE (NEWS1130) – As we continue to debate how to fund transportation improvements, our neighbours to the south have gone ahead with an ambitious plan.

Washington State passed a $15-billion transportation package in the State Senate yesterday. The gas tax will go up by 11.7 cents per gallon to pay for it.

The transportation improvements are supposed to be felt across the Evergreen state; they include a number of highway and bridge improvements, including the I-405 freeway. It also means re-built bridges, widened roads, new bike lanes and pedestrian walkways and local rail projects.

The funding passed by a narrow 27-22 vote and also included a spending bill that allocates the money to specific projects.

“There [are] packages in every part of the state, not just one or two high-profile projects,” said Senate Majority Leader Mark Schoesler, during debate on the floor.

Governor Jay Inslee is exploring an executive order that would require fuel producers to reduce the carbon content of gas — cutting green house gas emissions but likely further raising gas prices.

Both Democrats and Republicans admit the bill will create thousands of jobs.